To provide grantees with the allocations of Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) emergency contingency on January 24, 2011. These funds were distributed to LIHEAP grantees to help eligible low-income households meet home energy costs.

BACKGROUND:

The Human Services Amendments of 1994 (Public Law (P.L.) 103-252) amended Section 8623(e) of the LIHEAP statute to provide for a permanent authorization of an emergency contingency fund. Under this provision, up to $600,000,000 may be made available each fiscal year, in addition to other funds that may be appropriated, “to meet the additional home energy assistance needs of one or more States arising from a natural disaster or other emergency.”
The continuing resolution (CR) passed on December 22, 2010, (P.L. 111-322) and the LIHEAP appropriation passed on April 15, 2011 (P.L 112-10) included funds designated for LIHEAP contingency purposes.

CONTENT:

Allocations of $200 million
On January 24, 2011, the Secretary of Health and Human Services released $200 million in emergency contingency funds to all grantees; including States, Territories and Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations (Tribes). These funds were released to help eligible low-income households afford their energy costs and avoid making cutbacks on other household essentials. The $200 million were allocated under the following method:

$168 million (or 84 percent) to all grantees based on their FY 1982 regular (“old formula”) block grant ratios (these are the ratios which HHS uses to allocate regular block grant funds whenever the amount of such funds available to the States is less than $1.975 billion); and

$32 million (or 16 percent) to all States based on their shares, relative to all States’ total, of low-income households that heat with fuel oil and liquefied petroleum gas (propane).

The Tribal allocations of the contingency funds were based on the Tribes’ proportionate shares of their States’ FY 2011 regular block grant allocations in effect at the time of the CR.

The allocations to all grantees are shown in Attachment 1.

Allowable Uses
Grantees may use these contingency funds for any purpose authorized under LIHEAP, including heating assistance, crisis assistance, weatherization, administrative costs, and carryover, subject to normal LIHEAP restrictions. Grantees should add these funds to their regular FY 2011 block grant funds to determine limits on weatherization, administration and planning costs, and Assurance 16 activities. However, grantees must obligate at least 90 percent of the total of these funds and their regular block grant funds by September 30, 2011.

Funds Remaining
With the release of these funds, no additional emergency contingency funds are available in FY 2011.